March 20th, 2014. We
installed a couple of log feeders in mid-December, 2013. Our inspiration came
from a log feeder at the Ontario FeederWatch Cam sponsored by the Cornell
Lab of Ornithology that was visited regularly by a Pileated Woodpecker
(Dryocopus pileatus).
Within a day or so of
installation, Downy Woodpeckers (Picoides
pubescens) began to feed at these logs and, within a few days, other birds
began to investigate the logs. The White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis) was the last of the
‘exotic’ birds - birds we don't see often - that I spotted at the feeders this year - on February 11th.
I spotted it first on the
trunk of a tree immediately behind the log feeders, darted onto a log feeder
upside-down, grabbed a mouthful of food ‘to go’ and disappeared. I’ve seen two
birds at the same time – on a tree further into the woods but only one has
visited the log feeder at any one time. It has only fed at the log feeders,
never at the suet feeder attached to the platform feeder or at the tube seed
feeders. It’s appeared at irregular intervals since and is one of the hardest
birds to photograph because its appearance is so unpredictable. But it’s a very
striking bird and worth the effort to photograph.
A closer view.
If spotted, they can be
identified at a distance in their characteristic upside-down pose.
The
nuthatch tends to creep down or perch on tree trunks upside-down whereas the chickadee
flies in, and perches on branches but doesn't creep up or down tree trunks.
A typical pose upside-down of the White-breated Nuthatch on the log feeder compared with the…
The White-breasted
Nuthatch is resident in this area throughout the year.
Identification resource:
All About Birds: White-breasted
Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)
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